Dispensing closure



Nov. 14, 1950 T. J. D. RUSSELL 2,529,817

DISPENSING CLOSURE Filed June 22, 1945 ixfi INVENTOR.

T 7T.Duk Pu .seff

BY W

Patented Nov. 14, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,529,917 DISPENSING CLOSURE T. J. Duke Russell, Studio City, Calif. Application June 22, 1945, Serial No. 600,854 1 Claim. (01. 222-556) My invention relates to a closure particularly adapted to be mounted on the neck of containers such as collapsible tubes although not necessarily restricted to use with such tubes. Such containers are generally formed with a screw threaded neck on which is mounted an internally threaded cap. These caps are of small size and easily lost or damaged so that when lost the contents of the container, when they are material in paste form such as hand lotions or shaving cream, can deteriorate from the action of the air on the contents adjacent the neck opening, causing wastage.

The general object of the invention is to provide a closure that may be substituted for the usual cap after the container has been purchased or may be furnished with such container in lieu of a cap.

Another object of the invention is to provide a dispenser for containers such as collapsible tubes which may be readily exchanged with the usual cap and may be left permanently on the container or removed for use on another container having a threaded neck of the same diameter.

A further object of the invention is to provide a dispensing closure of simple and inexpensive construction and attractive appearance.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a dispensing closure by which the opening through the closure can be closed to any desired extent.

Another object of the invention is to provide a dispensing closure which enables paste material issuing therethrough to be severed when a desired amount has been extruded from the container on which the closure is mounted.

Still further features and objects of the invention will appear in the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

The invention is hereinafter described and illustrated in a preferred form, but it is to be understood that the scope of the invention is not in any way limited by this illustrative showing but only as indicated by the scope of the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings: Fig. 1 is a partial side elevation of the end of a collapsible tube furnished with the closure of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a view taken from the back of the closure; and

Fig. 3 is a cross section of the closure on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Referring now to the drawings, the numeral 5 indicates the upper end of a collapsible tube, the. threaded neck portion being shown at '6. The dispensing closure 1 is furnished with a body mem- .ber having a bore therethrough, said bore being .enlarged at one end 8 and preferably internally threaded to screw onto the threaded neck portion 6 of the collapsible tube. The closure is in the form of a short length of tubing which may .be advantageously formed from an attractively colored plastic, the tubing having a bore 9 therethrough which is in alignment with the aperture in the neck of the collapsible tube. A vertically arranged slot is formed in one side of the outer ,end of the closure and running from the outer surface into the bore. A pivoted closing and severing member ID is pivoted on a pin l l in the slot andis so proportioned that when in open position the bore 9 is unobstructed, while in the closed position the member It) acts to completely close the bore.

Preferably I form the inward edge of the member Ii} so as to act to cleanly separate the material within the bore 9 from any material that may be projecting therefrom. This is an important advantage since material is very generally wasted by an excess thereof being squeezed from the collapsible tube in use, with the result that when the usual screw cap is placed on the tube the material is squeezed into the threads of the cap. The material lodged in the threads in the cap is apt to become hard and make the cap difl'icult to remove or position on the tube.

The member I 0 may be advantageously formed as a quadrant shaped plate having a thickness substantially equal to the width of the bore 9,

as shown in Fig. 3, and provided with serrations formed on its curved edge to prevent the fingers of the user from slipping on the surface. Preferably, tho not necessarily, I form the bore 9 of square cross section and shape the inner edge of the member 10 to fit snugly against the walls of the slot and bore to form an effective closure thereof when not in use. Obviously a small helical spring could be fitted in a recess to bear against the under side of member I 0 to urge it toward closed position but owing to the close fit of the member in the slot the member will be frictionally held in a desired position.

It will be obvious that I can mount the dispensing closure by other means than by forming a screw thread therein. For instance, it could be cemented by a suitable adhesive on a smooth necked container, or could be made a press fit thereon.

I prefer to form the closure member from a. plastic since both the closure member and movable member I 0 may be molded very inexpensively to close limits, the only machining operation required being the boring of the hole to receive the pin H which may be secured in position by acetone or liquid plastic,

It will be evident that I have provided a closure which also serves as a dispenser since by the use of the closure the amount dispensed from the container may be readily controlled by varying the free opening of thepassage 9. For instance, in laying a ribbon of toothpaste on a toothbrush, it is readily possible to lay a thin ribbon along the edge of the brush and to cut off this ribbon at the desired point, whereas with collapsible tubes using the usual cap not only is a thicker ribbon than is required ejected but the only way to break off this ribbon is to brush the tube against the bristles of the toothbrush, which is undesirable.

It will be evident that I have described a dispensing closure of considerable utility and wide applicability but various modifications and changes may be made in the described form of the closure by those skilled in the art Without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claim.

' I claim:

A closure for containers, comprising a body adapted to be mounted on a container, said body being circular in cross section, having a domeshaped outer end and an opening therethrough for passage of material to be dispensed, said opening being square in cross section at the outer end portion thereof, said body having a longitudinal slot extending inwardly of the outer end thereof and extending through the wall of the body from said opening to the outside of said body, said body forming a planar ledge at the inner end of the slot, and a substantially quadrant-shaped plate-like closure element for said opening pivotally mounted in said slot about an 1 4 axis located inwardly of the outside of said body and immediately above said ledge, said closure element fitting said slot sufiiciently tightly to remain in adjusted position and being so mounted that when in outward position the opening through said body isunobstructed and one of the radii edges of the element forms a continuation of the wall of said opening and the other extends radially outward of said opening beyond the outer wall of said body, said ledge forming a stop for said other of said radii edges, the arcuate edge of said closure element extending beyond the outside of said body whereby the same may be readily engaged by a person desiring to operate the closure, said closure element being pivotally movable to an inward position whereby the end of the first mentioned radii edge contacts the opposite wall of said opening at its outer end to close said opening.

'1. J. DUKE RUSSELL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,325,269 Stanley Dec. 16, 1919 1,701,949 Davenport Feb. 12, 1929 1,836,561 Van Valkenburg Dec. 15, 1931 1,963,870 Scott June 19, 1934 2,107,355 Winkler Feb. 8, 1938 2,153,245 Gansz Apr. 4, 1939 2,260,763 Auditore Oct. 28, 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 176,779 Switzerland Apr. 30, 1935 214,520 Switzerland Apr. 30, 1941 

